Apparatus for throwing game

Abstract

A game apparatus comprises a plurality of projectiles 18 for throwing by players of the game; a plurality of cards 26; and, one or more caddy 10, the caddy having a primary surface 14 with an array of openings 16 therein, wherein each opening defines a recess 20 in the form of a cup extending behind the primary surface of a size sufficient to receive at least one of the projectiles. The openings are arranged in rows and the primary surface has support formations 30 / 32 on, in front of, and behind the rows of openings, the support formations arranged to receive a card in a plurality of orientations with respect to the primary surface. The support formations allow a card to be selectively held in: an upright orientation behind an opening, e.g. to provide a backboard for the opening; an upright orientation in front of the opening, e.g. to provide an obstruction or barrier in front of the opening; and a laid flat orientation over the opening, e.g. to occlude the opening such that it is no longer open for receipt of a projectile, and / or else to trap a projectile already contained in the recess.

Description

The present invention concerns apparatus for a game of skill involving throwing articles into receptacles, and, more specifically, although not exclusively, to an educational game of skill. INTRODUCTION There are a wide variety of board games that provide some educational content to the players, e.g. helping to teach logic or rewarding players for knowledge gained during playing the game. The success of such games lies in matching the nature of the educational content with the manner in which the game is played. When this synergy exists, there is an element on kinaesthetic learning achieved, whereby players can take on some appreciation of the subject matter whilst enjoying the physical activity of playing the game. Certain games of skill are known whereby players must throw balls or beanbags into cups. However, such games are typically played as a simple competition and do not have an educational element to the game. Often cups are arranged in a simple, predetermined arrangement and so there is little way to alter the difficulty of the game without spreading the cups out or allowing the play to be positioned closer / farther from the cups when throwing. It is an aim to provide a bespoke apparatus for playing a throwing-based game of skill. It may be considered an additional or alternative aim to provide a bespoke game apparatus for allowing the difficulty of the game to be adjusted, e.g. to suit an educational theme of the game. STATEMENTS OF INVENTION According to the present invention, there is provided a game apparatus comprising: a plurality of projectiles for throwing by players of the game; a plurality of cards; and, one or more caddy, the caddy having a primary surface with an array of openings therein, wherein each opening defines a recess in the form of a cup extending behind the primary surface of a size sufficient to receive at least one of the projectiles, the openings being arranged in one or more rows, and the primary surface further comprises support formations on opposing sides of the one or more row of openings, the support formations arranged to receive a card in a plurality of orientations with respect to the primary surface comprising an upstanding orientation and a laid flat orientation. The support formations may allow a card to be selectively held in: - an upright orientation behind an opening, e.g. to provide a backboard for the opening; - an upright orientation in front of the opening, e.g. to provide an obstruction in front of the opening; and / or, - a laid flat orientation over the opening, e.g. to occlude the opening such that it is no longer open for receipt of a projectile, and / or else to trap a projectile already contained in the recess The support formation may comprise a slot for receiving an end of a card. The support formation may comprise a plurality of slots opening in different orientations. The slots may open in different or angularly-offset orientations, e.g. perpendicular orientations. A first slot may open upwardly / perpendicularly away from the primary surface. A second slot may open in a direction substantially / parallel with the primary surface. A slot in one support formation may be aligned with or facing a slot in an adjacent / further support formation. The second slot in one support formation may be aligned with or facing the second slot in an adjacent / further support formation. Cards that are laid flat may be supported across a plurality of support formations, e.g. being received in the aligned slots of both support formations. A card supported in this manner may span two or more support formations. The support formations may be located in front or behind a row of openings. The caddy may have a front edge / face and a rear edge / face. The row of openings and / or support formations may extend laterally with respect to the front / rear of the caddy. The / each support formation may be elongate in form. The / each support formation may extend in front or behind a plurality of openings, e.g. across an entire row of the array. The / each support formation may extend the entire width of the caddy or the primary surface thereof. The / each support formation may have a continuous slot extending along the length thereof, e.g. the entire length thereof. This may comprise the first slot. The / each support formation may have a discontinuous slot along the length thereof, a plurality of discrete slots, which may be in an end-to-end arrangement or which may be at a common height above the upper surface. The / each support formation may take the form of an upstanding wall, flange or rail extending above the primary surface. The primary surface may be an upper surface of the caddy. The recesses / cups may extend beneath the primary surface. The primary surface may comprise a plurality of rows of openings. The caddy may be substantially hollow beneath the primary surface. The caddy may comprise front, rear and opposing side faces extending beneath the primary surface, e.g. about the periphery of the caddy. As such the primary surface is raised above a support surface on which the caddy sits in use. A support formation may extend along a front and / or rear edge of the primary surface or caddy. A front and / or rear face of the caddy may be obliquely angled relative to the primary surface, e.g. offset from vertical / perpendicular. The front and / or rear face may be offset from perpendicular by 5-20°. The caddy may comprise a ledge on the rear face. The ledge may extend at least part way along the rear face. The ledge may be located at a base of the caddy and / or along the bottom edge of the rear face. The ledge may support a card, e.g. a plurality or deck of cards. The caddy may comprise a receptacle for articles, such as projectiles. The receptacle may be open at its upper side / face. The receptacle may depend from a side or rear face of the caddy. The receptacle may comprise a base and peripheral wall. The receptacle may hold / constrain multiple projectiles or token, such as balls. The apparatus may further comprise a plurality / deck of cards comprising indicia for playing the game. The cards may comprise indicia defining the intended use of the card, such as graphical or written instructions for use of the card. The indicia may communicate the intended orientation for the card to be held by the support formation and / or the intended location for the card relative to the array of openings. The indicia may indicate the number of turns for which a card is to be held by the support formation. The indicia may indicate whether the card should be located relative to an empty recess or a recess containing a projectile. The apparatus may comprise a plurality caddies. The caddies may face each other in use. The cups defining the recesses in the primary surface may be removable or integral with the primary surface. Removable cups may comprise a collar or rim for supporting the cups against the primary surface. According to a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a caddy for the game apparatus of the first aspect. Any optional caddy features defined in relation the first aspect or in the appended claims may be applied to the caddy of the second aspect. Practicable embodiments of the invention are described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which: Figure 1 shows a three-dimensional view of a caddy according to an example of the invention; and, Figure 2 shows a plan view of an example game apparatus comprising a plurality of caddies. Turning firstly to figure 1, there is shown a game apparatus for a game of skill in the form of a caddy 10. The caddy is generally box-like in form and has a hollow interior. The caddy 10 has a front face 11, a rear face 12 and opposing side faces 13 extending between the front and rear faces on opposing sides of the caddy 10. The lower edges of the front 11, rear, 12 and side 13 faces collectively define the base of the caddy 10. The caddy is generally rectangular in plan, i.e. with the exception of the receptacle 15 which will be described below. In this example the front 11 and rear 12 faces are obliquely angled away from a vertical plane such that hey slope towards each other or inwardly. A such the caddy 10 is trapezium shaped in section or when viewed from one of the sides 13. The caddy 10 comprises an upper surface 14 which is the primary surface for the purpose of playing the game. The upper surface 14 is elevated above the base by the front 11, rear 12 and side 13 walls. Thus the upper surface 14 stands proud of any support surface that the caddy 10 sits on for the purpose of playing the game. The upper surface 14 has a plurality of openings 16 arranged in a predetermined array over the area of the surface. The openings 16 are arranged in two rows of three openings per row in this arrangement, thereby defining an array of six openings in this example. Greater or fewer numbers of opening could be provided in different examples. The rows extend laterally across the width direction of the caddy 10. The game to be played using the caddy 10 is a throwing-based game in which a player attempts to throw projectiles 18 into the openings 16. The projectiles 18 shown in this example are balls but other projectiles could be used, such as beanbags or the like. Each opening 16 is typically wide enough to receive the projectiles 18. The openings 16 may have a width / diameter that is at least 1.5, 2, 2.5 or 3 times the width of the projectiles. The openings may have a diameter in the order of 3cm-12cm or 4cm to 10cm, e.g. around 5-8 cm. The openings 16 define the mouth of recesses 20 extending below the upper / playing surface 14. The recesses 20 take the form of cups and may have a rounded lower / closed end beneath the upper surface 14. The cups extend below the upper surface 14 into the hollow interior of the caddy 10. Only one cup 20 is shown in phantom in figure 1 but it will be appreciated that each opening 16 has a corresponding recess / cup. The cups 20 in this example are integrally formed with upper surface 14. The entire caddy 10 can usefully be formed as a single structure, e.g. of a plastics material, by moulding. The caddy may be formed of a generally thin-walled, hollow structure having an outer profile of the shape shown in figure 1. In other examples, the cups 20 could comprise separate components that are attached to the upper surface 14 as an assembly step for the caddy. The cups may have a collar formation that may have a width / diameter that is greater than that of the openings 16, i.e. so that it can engage the upper surface 14 whilst the cup is suspended beneath. In such examples, the form of the cups could be modified if desired. In various embodiments, the form of the cups could be varied, e.g. to be able to contain more projectiles or else to make it less likely that balls / projectiles will bounce out from cups. A ledge 22 extends at least part way across the rear face 12 of the caddy 10. The ledge is at the base of the caddy. The ledge has a lip 24 which is upstanding and spaced form the rear face 12. The ledge can therefore support a number of cards 26 that will be used when playing the game. The ledge may support the player’s hand or deck of cards. The receptacle 15 defines a partial enclosure that is open to allow insertion / removal of projectiles. The receptacle 15 takes the form of a peripheral wall structure and a continuous base. The base of the receptacle 15 may be elevated relative to the base of the caddy 10 as a whole. The peripheral wall in this example is generally semi-circular in plan in this example but could be elliptical or polygonal if desired. The height of the receptacle 15 is less than that of the caddy 10, e.g. less than or equal to half or one-third of the caddy height. The receptacle 15 depends from the rear face 12 of the caddy. Thus the contents of the receptacle are generally hidden from a player sat opposite the caddy 10 when playing the game. The receptacle 15 holds multiple projectiles 18, i.e. in excess of five, eight or ten projectiles. The caddy 10 has support formations 28 in / on the upper surface 14. The support formations are arranged to hold individual cards 26 in a position / orientation relative to the openings 16. An individual support formation could be provided in front of and / or behind each opening 16. However in this example, the support formations run continuously in front of and behind the row of openings 16. Thus a continuous support formation can hold a plurality of individual cards at different locations relative to different openings, e.g. in a side-by-side arrangement. The support formations 28 take the form of a low wall or rail extending laterally across the upper surface 14 / The support formations comprise a first slot 30, which faces upwardly (away from the support surface 14), and a second slot 32, which opens in a direction substantially perpendicular to the first slot (parallel with the support surface 14). The first slot 30 has an open (upper) end and a closed (lower) end. The first slot has a depth in the order of 0.5-1.5 cm. Thus the first slot 30 can receive the edge of a card 26 to hold the card upright. The second slot 32 is a through-slot, i.e. extending fully through the support formation 28. Thus the second slot can receive a card 26 form one side and allow the card to pass fully through the slot 32. In this way the slot 32 can support a card part way along its length, e.g. with a portion of the card 26 protruding each side of the slot. The slots 30 and 32 have a width that is of the order of 1-2mm. However the precise width depends on the thickness of the cards 26 since the slots must be of width sufficient to comfortable receive a card therein. Whilst the first slot 30 is continuous along the length of the support formation 28 in this example, this need not necessarily be the case and discontinuities in the slot may be provided to indicate the correct card locations along the slot 30. The second slot 32 has such discontinuities in this example such that each part of the slot 32 can receive an individual card. The support formations run in front of and behind the row of openings. Thus two rows of openings in this example have three support formations, one in front of the front row of openings, one between the adjacent rows of openings and one behind the rear row of openings. The projectiles 18 shown in figure 1 take the form of balls. When playing a game, the players attempt to throw a projectile 18 into one of the cups 20 of the caddy 10. Typically two or more players will play the game and each will have their own caddy 10 as shown in figure 2, with the caddy of one player facing the caddy of the opposing player. In figure 2, there is also shown a game board 34 which may be placed between the opposing caddies. The board 34 may or may not be used. However the board provides a playing surface to add a further dimension to a game, whereby players may have pieces 36 that move around the board to trigger different actions, e.g.: - to gain projectiles - to gain cards for use in the throwing aspects of the game - to incur forfeits, such as losing a card or projectile - to trigger bonuses, e.g. double point scoring or the like - to swap one or more card with an opponent A deck of card 26 may be positioned on the board from which the players can draw cards to be used in the game. The board may also provide a defined spacing between the caddies 10, i.e. so that the correct distance is maintained when throwing projectiles at the opposing caddy. Whilst only two caddies are shown, it will be appreciated that up to four caddies could be used on opposing sides of the board. In other examples, the board is not used and instead the actions on the cards alone are used as instructions for playing the game. Returning to figure 1, it can be seen that the support structure usefully allows cards to be held in different orientations relative to the openings 16. In particular a card may be upstanding in front of an opening or behind an opening when inserted into the first slot 30 of the relevant support formation. Alternatively, a card can be laid flat over an entire opening or part of an opening when supported by the second slot 32. In this regard, a card may span two support formations 28 when fully covering an opening therebetween. In figure 1, the various different card positions are shown as: - front row defender 26A - front row backboard 26B (and rear row defender) - rear row backboard 26C - front blocker 26D - rear blocker 26E Thus the cards can be used to make a particular opening easier or harder to hit with a projectile, or else may be used to entirely block the opening so it cannot allow entry of a projectile. The cards have indicia thereon to explain the intended use of the card, i.e. which of the above card positions can be use for that card. The cards may have additional indicia / information on, such as the number of rounds that card can be used for. Cards may be used once, for a fixed number of turns or indefinitely depending on the indica. Furthermore, the indicia may permit reuse of the cards or not. Cards not currently being used may be stored by the player on the ledge 22 of their caddy such that their function remains secret form the other player. Certain rules (e.g. indica on cards) may indicate how many attempts the player has to try and throw a projectile into an opening of the other player’s caddy 10 on their turn. Using the above caddy structure for playing a throwing-based game of skill thus allows a significant variety of changes to the basic rules to make it easier or harder to score by throwing a projectile into the openings of the opponent’s caddy. The defender card position will make it harder to reach the opening directly behind the card. The backboard card position will typically make it easier to land the projectile in the opening in front of the card. Furthermore, an additional / alternative aim may be to dislodge a player’s upstanding cards, i.e. the cards receive in the first slot 30 of a support formation 28. Indicia may be provided on one or both surfaces of each card 26. Some information / indicia may face one player whilst other information / indicia face the opposing player when the card is upstanding. Players may gather projectiles or other token to keep a score of how each player is fairing by counting the projectiles / tokens in their respective receptacle 15. Other scoring systems or criteria for winning / losing may be put in place as desired. The invention also beneficially allows a themed game where educational information may be provided on the cards and / or board and presented to the player(s) whilst playing. In one example, the game may be themed around sexual health. The cards may contain information themed around sexual health, sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy, the menstrual cycle or the like. The defender, backboard and blocker positions of the cards may relate to positive and negative aspects of sexual health, safe sex or understanding of the menstrual cycle. In certain examples, where removable cups 20 are used, they could be shaped to correspond with the shape of menstrual cups. Of course, other themes may be used for the game depending on the information or content to be delivered to the players.

Claims

1. A game apparatus comprising:a plurality of projectiles for throwing by players of the game;a plurality of cards; and,one or more caddy, the caddy having a primary surface with an array of openings therein, wherein each opening defines a recess in the form of a cup extending behind the primary surface of a size sufficient to receive at least one of the projectiles, the openings being arranged in one or more rows, andthe primary surface further comprises support formations on opposing sides of the one or more row of openings, the support formations arranged to receive a card in a plurality of orientations with respect to the primary surface comprising an upstanding orientation and a laid flat orientation.

2. A game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the support formations allow a card to be selectively held in each of the following conditions:an upright orientation behind an opening;an upright orientation in front of the opening; anda laid flat orientation over the opening to occlude the opening.

3. A game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the support formation comprises a slot for receiving an end of a card.

4. A game apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the support formation comprises a plurality of slots opening in different orientations.

5. A game apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a first slot opens perpendicularly away from the primary surface and a second slot opens in a direction substantially parallel with the primary surface.

6. A game apparatus according to any one of claims 3-5, wherein a slot in one support formation is aligned with or facing a slot in an further support formation.

7. A game apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein a row of support formations is located in front of and / or behind a row of openings, said row of support formations and openings extending laterally across the caddy.

8. A game apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein each support formation is elongate in form and extends across an entire row of the array.

9. A game apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein each support formation has a continuous slot extending along the length thereof and also a plurality of discrete further slots arranged in an end-to-end arrangement.

10. A game apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein each support formation takes the form of an upstanding wall extending above the primary surface.

11. A game apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein the primary surface is an upper surface of the caddy and the recesses extend beneath the primary surface.

12. A game apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein the caddy is substantially hollow beneath the primary surface, the caddy comprising front, rear and opposing side faces extending beneath the primary surface such that the primary surface is raised above a support surface on which the caddy sits in use.

13. A game apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the front and / or rear face of the caddy is obliquely angled relative to the primary surface.

14. A game apparatus according to claim 12 or 13, wherein the caddy comprises a ledge extending at least part way along the rear face to support one or more cards.

15. A game apparatus according to claim 12, 13 or 14, wherein the caddy comprises a receptacle for projectiles, which depends from a side or rear face of the caddy.

16. A game apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein the primary surface comprises a plurality of rows of openings.

17. A game apparatus according to any preceding claim, comprising a plurality / deck of cards comprising indicia for playing the game, the indicia displaying the intended orientation for the card to be held by the support formation, a duration for which a card is to be held by the support formation and / or the intended location for the card relative to the array of openings.

18. A game apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein the cups defining the recesses in the primary surface are removable and comprise a collar or rim for supporting the cups against the primary surface.

19. A game apparatus according to any preceding claim, comprising a plurality of said caddies.

20. A caddy for a game apparatus comprising a plurality of projectiles for throwing by players of the game and a plurality of cards, wherein the caddy comprises:a primary surface with an array of openings therein, wherein each opening defines a recess in the form of a cup extending behind the primary surface of a size sufficient to receive at least one of the projectiles, the openings being arranged in one or more rows, andthe primary surface further comprises support formations on opposing sides of the one or more row of openings, the support formations arranged to receive a card in a plurality of orientations with respect to the primary surface comprising an upstanding orientation and a laid flat orientation.

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